A Year in Review + Goal Setting for 2018

I can’t believe it’s New Year’s Eve. Where did the year go? Everyone always told me that as you get older, and especially once you have kids, life really flies. I keep trying to hold on to every moment and slow down, but as you look at things in the past, of course, it’s going to seem quick. Anyway, as I look back at 2017 I am so proud of how much this little blog has grown and I am so thankful to you, my readers, for making that happen. I am looking forward to another year of even more growth so stay tuned. I thought I would share my most popular posts and some tips for goal setting for 2018.

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Most popular posts in 2017

Coming in at number five is Tips for Eating Out With a Baby. I can’t say I am surprised this is a top post. I know I was full of anxiety when Aiden was first born to take him out of the house and especially to eat out and possibly disturb other people. It turns out it’s actually not so bad and can even be easy. This post has six tips for eating out, plus a list of items that make eating out easier.

My fourth most read post is All About Baby Formula. This was a fun one. When we decided to start supplementing with formula I did A TON of research to find the best formula. Surprisingly the winner turned out to be both organic and affordable! I share lots of resources as well to help with your own research.

My second most read post of 2017 was about Transitioning to the Crib and Baby Sleep Tips. So many moms and babies struggle with this transition. Fortunately it was relatively painless for us (thanks to the DockATot — save $10 with this affiliate link) so I shared my five best tips and experience.

And coming in at number one as the most read post of 2017 was a personal and emotional post for me about Loving Your Babies While They Are Here. It’s about not taking any moment for granted.

You may have noticed I have been a little absent in the last week. I have been spending time with family and looking back at 2017 and ahead to 2018. I always love the time between Christmas and New Years to organize and look forward to the new year. I have included below some tips for goal setting for 2018 as well as a few of my goals for the new year.

Five Tips for Goal Setting for 2018

Have you set your goals for 2018 yet? If not, take a few minutes to set some goals for yourself. Here are some tips to get you started.

Set goals instead of resolutions. Goals are more tangible and achievable. You want something that you can actually accomplish.

Set realistic goals. Be specific and really think about the goals you are setting. Are they achievable? Can they be accomplished? You can always reevaluate and challenge yourself with something more difficult if you find the goal you set is too easy.

Write your goals down. You will be more likely to complete your goals if you write them down. I love to write my goals in my planner a couple of months in the future that way I have natural check-in points. My favorite planner is this Vera Bradley agenda. I have been using it for years!

Share your goals. Share your goals with your family and friends. This will help you be more accountable and you will be more likely to achieve them if you share them.

Don’t be too hard on yourself. Of course, you want to achieve your goals, but life happens. Be easy on yourself if you don’t reach one (or more) of your goals. Look at the progress you made and be happy with the steps you did take and the goals you did achieve!

My Goals for 2018

Spend more time with my family. We are always good about going on adventures as a family, especially on the weekends. In the fall I stopped posting on social media on the weekends (other than things that were scheduled out). I want to do more of this in 2018.

Be more productive and intentional in my work. There are times where I get so overwhelmed with my to-do list that I procrastinate and end up scrolling through Facebook instead of doing what I should be doing. I recently read the book The Productivity Project in the hope that I might find some ways that would help me be more productive. I plan to try some of the techniques in 2018!

Take care of myself. I want to continue to workout and stay healthy. This is usually the first thing to go out the window when I am busy and/or stressed. I want to make more time for this in the new year.

Keep learning and growing. I have learned a ton about ‘blogging’ from experience. I hope in 2018 to build upon all that I have learned and grow this blog. With that in mind, I want to continue to create content that is relevant and helpful for you. I would love if you would take two minutes to fill out this short reader survey.

Keep working on my photography. Photography has always been something I enjoyed, but through this blog, I have really learned a ton and I can’t wait to see where I am at this time in 2018!

How is your goal setting for 2018 going? Feel free to share some of your goals below.

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Melissa

Hi, I’m Melissa! I am a mama to an energetic toddler, a wife to my amazing husband Dan, and I work full-time as a meeting planner. I started this blog because, after having my little guy, I quickly learned that exhaustion and baby brain causes you to forget some of the amazing (sometimes horrible and sometimes wonderful) details related to the first several months of raising a baby. Considering we may have more kids in the future, I want to document everything we do, so we remember what worked the first time around, and hopefully help other first time mamas along the way!